Tablet arm adaptor for chairs



March 26, 1968 A; KRUEGER 3,375,038

TABLET ARM ADAPTOR FOR CHAIRS Filed Sept. 16, 1966 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTQIZ. Q4419 0M 1 7%?0545? ATTOENEV March 26, 1968 A. F. KRUEGER TABLET ARM ADAPTOR FOR CHAIRS 2 Sheets-Sheet Filed; Se

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m, MLMM+ ATTORNEY 5 United States Patent 3,375,038 TABLET ARM'ADAPTOR FOR CHAIRS Allison F. Krueger, 226 Miramar Drive, Green Bay,

Wis. 54301; Helen Van Nortwick Krueger, George E. Bills, F. N. Trowbridge, Sr., Philip J. Hendrickson,

and John M. Rose, executors of said A. F. Krueger,

deceased Filed Sept. 16, 1966, Ser. No. 579,881 8 Claims. (Cl. 297-160) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE An adaptor for applying tablet arms to conventional single and multiple occupancy chairs, the adaptor comprising parallel bars having upstanding posts for supporting a tablet arm. The parallel bars extend along and embrace the frame members of the chair and have apertured fingers which are interposed between the chair frame and the seat. The same bolts that secure the seat to the frame extend through the fingers on the adaptor bars.

A single adaptor has application both to single and multiple occupancy seating. Sheet 1 of the drawings shows the adaptor used in connection with a type of chair having a unitary base comprising end frames connected by longitudinal bars. The conventional chair 'of this type has a molded seat shell secured to the base by bolts inserted from below.

When it is desired to apply a tablet arm to such a chair, the adaptor of the present invention is applicable in interlocking engagement with the base and has apertured fingers which are interposed between the base and the seat shell to be anchored by the same bolts which hold the seat shell to the base. The adaptor comprises bars which are parallel to those of the base and which may be in lateral contact therewith and which extend beyond the base and upwardly for the support of the tablet arm.

Sheet 2 of the drawings shows the adaptor as used in connection with a multiple occupancy seat having an elongated base supported by pedestals which are widely spaced. The seat shells, instead of being fastened directly to such a base are attached to spiders mounted at intervals along the base and having bolt holes with which the adaptor bolt holes register. In this device, as in the single occupancy seat, the adaptor is anchored by the same bolts which hold the seat shells to the base,

Background of the invention Because the adaptor is readily applicable to conventional seating, it is unnecessary for a dealer to stock one line of chairs equipped with tablet arms and a separate line of seating devices which are not thus equipped. Using the adaptors of the present invention, the dealer can apply tablet arms to conventional seating devices if and as needed.

Description of the invention In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a view in perspective of a complete chair provided with an adaptor and tablet arm.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary detail view partially in section on the line 2-2 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary view in perspective of a chair frame without the seat shell and in process of having an adaptor applied thereto.

FIG. 4 is a view similar to FIG. 3 showing the assembly after the adaptor is in place.

FIG. 5 is a view in front elevation of a seating device which includes a plurality of seat shells supported on a base and one of which is equipped with a tablet arm using the adaptor of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary detail view on an enlarged scale of a portion of the base and the adaptor applied thereto, the seat shell being omitted.

FIG. 7 is a View taken in section on the line 77 of FIG. 6 and showing the seat shell in place.

FIG. 8 is a further enlarged view in perspective showing the fragments of a multiple seat base upon which one seat shell is shown to be mounted and equipped with a tablet arm, the adjacent seat shell and tablet arm being omitted but the tablet arm adaptor being in position.

Reference is first made to Sheet 1:

The chair base 6 comprises a pair of end frames 8 and 10, each of which unitarily includes one forward leg 12 and one rearward leg 14, the two end frames being permanently connected by means of generally parallel bars 16 and 18.

. Means is provided for detachably connecting the seat shell 20 to this base. In the instant chair, this is done by providing straps at 22 and 24 which cross connect the bars 16 and 18 and are provided with holes at 26 and 28 to receive bolts 30 which are threaded into bosses 32 with which the seat shell 20 is provided.

The adaptor shown in partially disassembled position in FIG. 3 and in fully assembled position in FIG. 4, comprises a pair of spaced arms 36 and 38 which are so spaced as to underlie the respective bars 16 and 18 of the base.

The arms 36 and 38 0f the adaptor have means for interlocking connection with the base to hold them in the assembled position of FIG. 4. To this end, the bar 36 has hookshaped fingers 40 and 42 with apertured extremities 44 and 46, respectively, designed to overlie the straps 22 and 24 with their apertures in registry with the apertures 26 of said straps. Similarly, the rear arm 38 of the adaptor has fingers 48 and 50 with apertured extremities 52 and 54, respectively, designed to overlie the rear ends of the straps 22 and 24 with their apertures in registry with the apertures 28 of said straps.

With the adaptor applied to the base as shown in FIG. 4, bolts 30 can be passed upwardly through the registering openings of the straps 22 and 24 of the base and the fingers 40, 42, 48 and 50 of the adaptor so that the same bolts which hold the seat shell to the base will also position the adaptor,

The adaptor has a post 55 upstanding from the arm 36 in a position spaced outwardly from the seat. An

other post 56 extends upwardly from the corresponding end of arm 38 and has a forward horizontal extension at 58 connected with post 55 and extending thence inwardly at 60 to carry the forward portion of the tablet arm 62 as clearly shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. Suitable apertures are provided at 64 to receive the bolts 66 by which the tablet arm is attached.

The chair comprising the base 6 and the seat shell 20 is a conventional article of manufacture. The dealer having a stock of such chairs can readily supply them with tablet arms simply by withdrawing the bolts 30, placing the adaptor as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, replacing the bolts, and mounting the tablet arm on the adaptor.

The multiple seat shown in FIGS. 5 to 8 will now be described:

The base 68 of the multiple seat unit may comprise an inverted channel 70 supported near its opposite ends by pedestals 72, one of which is shown in perspective in FIG. 8. At spaced points along the channel 70 are spiders 74 which have radiating arms 76 apertured to receive the bolts 30 which are attached to the seat shells 20 as already described. These spiders may be bolted to the base by bolts 78 (FIGS. 6, 7 and 8) to permit the seat shell to be located at such spacing along the base as may be desired.

The adaptor arms 36, 38 receive the seat base channel 70 between them but are not interlocked therewith in the same sense as in FIGS. 1 to 4. However, the apertured fingers 40, 42, 48 and 50 overlie the apertured arms 76 of the spider 74 in the same manner as above described so that the apertured extremities of the fingers lie between the seats and the supporting arms of the spider to be anchored by the same bolts 30 which secure the seat. Thus the tablet arm is supported by the same adaptor regardless of the type of base and the adaptor is so designed as to be anchored by the seat bolts regardless of whether the seat shell is carried by an individual base as in FIGS. 1 to 4 or a multiple seating base as in FIGS. 5 to 8.

I claim:

1. The combination with a seat base and a seat in detachable connection with the base, of an adaptor detachably connected with the base, and a tablet arm mounted on the adaptor, said adaptor including members detachably interposed between the seat base and seat, said members having apertures in registry with apertures in the base and seat and bolts extending through said apertures thereby anchoring the adaptor to the seat by the same bolts which secure the seat to the base.

2. A combination according to claim 1 in which the base is a multiple seat base having spiders connected therewith and provided with radiating arms having bolt receiving apertures with which the apertured arms of the adaptor are in registry and through which the said bolts extend.

3. A combination according to claim 1 in which the seat base comprises end frames and bars connected with the end frames and to which the seat is secured, the adaptor having portions in interlocking connection with the respective bars.

4. A combination according to claim 3 in which the adaptor has arms registering with the respective bars and finger means attached to the arms and embracing the bars, said seat having detachable bolts connecting it with the bars, and the finger means having apertures through which the bolts extend.

5. An adaptor for mounting a tablet arm on a chair of the type which comprises a base to which a seat shell is detachably bolted, the base having apertured means through which bolts extend into the seat shell, said adaptor comprising a pair of spaced arms having tablet arm supports disposed at corresponding ends of the arms to lie outwardly of the seat shell, and apertured fingers connected with said arms and positioned for registry with the bolts which hold the shell to the base whereby the adaptor is anchored by the same bolts.

6. An adaptor according to claim 5 in which said arms are dimensioned to underlie said apertured means of the base and said fingers extend upwardly beside said means and have portions positioned to extend across said means and between said means and the seat shell.

' 7. An adaptor according to claim 5 in which the spacing of the arms of the adaptor is such that a portion of the base is received between said arms and the fingers extend rearwardly from both respective arms.

8. The combination with a seat base and a seat detachably bolted to the seat base, the base having apertured means through which bolts extend into the seat, and an adaptor comprising a pair of spaced arms having tablet arm supports disposed at corresponding ends of the arms to lie outwardly of the seat, and apertured fingers connected with said arms and positioned for registry with the bolts which hold the seat to the base whereby the adaptor is anchored by the same bolts.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,857,958 10/1958 Wright 297 X 3,082,036 3/1963 Albinson 297416 3,191,992 6/ 1965 McMasters 297-160 3,230,005 1/1966 Staples 297160 3,241,884 3/1966 Thatcher et a1 297416 3,292,972 12/1966 Krueger 297160 CASMIR A. NUNBERG, Primary Examiner. 

